


If You're Into It

by softtaika



Category: Clementiti, Flight of the Conchords - All Media Types, Jemaine Clement - Fandom, Taika Waititi - Fandom, What We Do in the Shadows (2014), fotc - Fandom, jemaika, taikawaititi
Genre: Bisexual Male Character, Bisexuality, Clementiti - Freeform, FOTC, Gay, Gay Male Character, M/M, New Zealand, flight of the conchords - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-07-02
Packaged: 2019-05-18 16:39:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14856371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softtaika/pseuds/softtaika
Summary: After being invited to Dave's party, Jemaine meets up with an old college friend of Bret's. He soon finds himself infatuated by this man, who he hopes feels the same way.





	1. The Party

“Man, I don’t know if I should go,” Bret said to Jemaine, flipping back and forth between shirts in the mirror. Jemaine pushed himself upright in his bed and stared at Bret in a confused manner. “Why not? An hour ago you said you wanted to, now you’re not sure?” Bret turned around, still clutching the fluorescent animal jumpers in his hands. “Well, I’ve changed my mind.” Jemaine sighed loudly and whipped his head back in frustration, rubbing his hands on his face. “Bret,” he groaned, “you promised me you’d come with. I can’t just show up alone.”

“Dave will be there,” Bret responded, Jemaine sighed again, this time staring directly at Bret. “I know Dave will be there, it’s his house.” Bret shrugged and turned back around to once again examine his tops. “Point is,” Jemaine continued, having no intention of stopping this conversation, “you promised you would go with me. I need a wingman, therefore, you’re coming along, whether you like it or not.”

Bret rolled his eyes, “Why do I always have to be the wingman? Why can’t you be the wingman every once and awhile. Maybe we could, I don’t, like, take turns?” He asked, deciding on the grey sweatshirt shirt with a tiger’s head on it that was being held up by his right hand. 

“Because it’s better if you’re the wingman,” Jemaine explained, “plus, the girls dig me more than they dig you.” Bret ignored this last comment and walked behind the bathroom wall to change his shirt. Jemaine let himself fall back onto the fluffy pillows that were propped up against the wall behind him. The truth was, Jemaine just really didn’t want to go to the party alone. Him and Bret were practically attached at the hip, he could hardly even imagine what it’d be like without Bret beside him.

After a minute or two, Bret walked out of the bathroom, switching off the light and shutting the door behind him. He shuffled over to his bed and laid down, facing Jemaine’s direction, who was sat on his bed across the bedroom. “Fine, I’ll go, but you can’t just get drunk, pick up some girl, and then waltz out of there and leave me alone. Okay?” Jemaine shrugged, “Fine, but you can’t leave me either. This has to be a mutual thing.” Bret nodded in agreement, it sounded like a fair enough plan

A few hours later, Jemaine was rummaging through the pile of semi-dirty and semi-clean clothes that were thrown onto the floor. He sniffed a red, white, and blue sweater, that just so happened to be at the top of the heap, and came to the conclusion that this would have to do. He didn’t want to go too wild, but he also didn’t want to dress too casual. He looked over at Bret, who was waiting patiently by the door, sporting his grey tiger jumper. Jemaine pulled the sweater over his head, deciding that it would definitely fit the dress code. If Bret could wear a sweatshirt with a tiger proudly displayed on the front, Jemaine could wear his sweater.

The two of them made their way out of the small apartment, making sure to lock the door behind them. They made their way down the small, dusty hallway and into the elevator. It creaked as they stepped in, and as the bell dinged, signaling they were about to have the cold metal doors close on them, the lights flickered a little. Jemaine wasn’t surprised though, who even knew how old this building was.

He and Bret stood in silence, side by side, as the elevator slowly crept to the first floor. They finally reached the lobby and they stepped out into the cozy hall. Eugene was writing something onto a paper that was held on a clipboard. Jemaine made the mistake to make eye contact, and the owner of the apartments awkwardly smiled and winked? Jemaine swore he saw him wink at him. This made Jemaine slightly uncomfortable, but he chose to ignore it and followed Bret outside.

The cool breeze and smell of trash hit his face as he walked out into the busy streets of New York City, specifically Chinatown. He hopped down the steps and was abruptly stopped by none other than Mel. “Hi guys!” She exclaimed, popping out of seemingly nowhere. She began following them as the two tried to make a quick escape, “Where you guys off to?” She interrogated, keeping a steady pace in order to keep up with them. Bret slowed down slightly, not wanting to come across as rude. Jemaine found this to be a dumb idea, but he also slowed his pace. “We’re headed to a party,” Bret stated, not hesitating whatsoever. “Oh,” Mel said, seeming interested, but also skeptical. “Where?” She asked. “At Dave’s,” Jemaine responded, not wanting to keep this conversation going for too long. “Oh, will there be any girls there?” Mel asked, a tint of jealousy gleaming in her big doe eyes. Bret shrugged, “ Knowing Dave, probably.”

Mel gave a fake smile, “Well, be careful guys, I don’t want any sluts chasing after you. Especially you, Bret.” She looked over at Bret lovingly, smiling wildly. Jemaine rolled his eyes and Bret shifted an inch away from Mel. “Nice talking to you Mel,” Jemaine said, trying to lose her. “Yeah, good catching up with you.” Bret said in return. “Oh, um, okay,” Mel said, waving to Jemaine and Bret, “I guess I’ll see you later?” They nodded and rushed off. 

A few bus stops later and a quick walk, Jemaine and Bret arrived at Dave’s house, or rather, Dave’s parent’s house. They were out of the country right now, most likely visiting extended family in India. For some odd reason, that Jemaine couldn't comprehend at all, they decided to leave the house to Dave. He shrugged at the idea of this and followed Bret up the stairs to the porch of the house. They knocked on the door and were greeted by Dave, who was grinning and holding a half-full solo cup. “Hey! Bret, Jermaine!” Dave exclaimed.

“Jemaine,” Jemaine corrected

“Whatever,” Dave shot back.

An awkward silence followed this interaction until Dave shouted, “come on in you guys! So glad you could make it! Drinks are in the kitchen, pool out back, and we’ve got a crazy game of Clue going on downstairs if you’re interested. I know board games aren’t for everyone though, so we also had corn hole out back. Anyways! Have fun, enjoy yourselves!” He high fived Jemaine and waltzed off into the living room, leaving Bret and Jemaine alone in a room full of strangers.

“Now what?” Bret asked, looking around like a lost puppy in a crowd of wolves. Jemaine shrugged, “I don’t know.” The music loudly blared through the house, it was hard to even hear what they were saying to each other. “You wanna go get a drink?” Bret asked, Jemaine shrugged. “Why not?” They decided to move away from the doorway and made their way into the small kitchen filled with people talking while pouring drinks. Jemaine grabbed two cups, handing one to Bret, and took hold of a bottle of beer. He poured a gracious amount into his cup and offered some to Bret, Bret shook his head. “No man, I’m okay,” he explained, “I don’t like beer. It’s bitter, and it makes me have to go to the toilet.” Jemaine nodded and set the bottle down, taking a sip of his own cup of beer. Bret watched, but before he could say anything, someone came up to his side.

“Bret!” The man said excitedly. Jemaine turned to face this direction and saw a tall, curly haired, fellow leaning up against the counter. He had a giant grin plastered on his face and his warm brown eyes were giving off a feeling of excitement, endearment, and glee. Jemaine couldn’t keep his eyes off this guy, he had to have been one of the most beautiful men he had ever seen. His heart was racing and he wanted to say something, but he felt glued to the floor he was stood on. “Oh, hey,” Bret said in return, giving the man a quick hug. “How you been man?” He asked, the man smiled again. “Good! I’ve been good! How have you been. I haven’t talked to you since, what, 04? Man, time really does fly.” He laughed and Bret nodded in response, “Yeah! It’s great to see you, what have you been up to?” Jemaine didn’t really hear the rest of the conversation, because he was too busy watching the man. The way he laughed with his whole body, the way his eyes smiled, the way he would take a sip of his drink with every other bit of conversation. Jemaine couldn’t help but be infatuated by this man, and he didn’t even know his goddamn name.

“Well it was great catching up with you, Bret,” the man said, waving to Bret as he began to walk away, “You too!” Bret shouted, turning back around to Jemaine, still smiling. Jemaine snapped back into reality and looked directly at Bret, “Who was that?” He asked, now looking into the other room, hoping to catch a glance of the guy. “Oh, that was Taika,” Bret responded, “he’s an old friend of mine from college. We used to room together.” Jemaine nodded, searching the room with his eyes. He finally saw Taika, who was now standing in the corner talking to another person. Jemaine sighed, he really wished he could have talked to him. 

“What’s he doing in the US?” Jemaine asked, Bret shrugged. “Dunno, he said something about pursuing directing, possibly acting? Why do you wanna know?” Jemaine shrugged, “I don’t know, just thought I’d ask.” Bret nodded, “oh, uh, okay.” They both stood for a bit, until Bret decided he would go join in on that game of Clue that was apparently happening down stairs. Jemaine decided not to go, instead he decided to go out back to where Dave possibly was. He grabbed his beer and walked outside. There was a crowd of people in the pool, and a crowd of people by the bonfire. Dave was sat down on a bench, having a conversation with two ladies who had likely just gotten out of the pool. Jemaine decided it would be best if he didn’t interrupt this conversation, so he instead walked over to the Tiki Bar and sat down. 

He sighed, looking off into the crowd of people. Now would have been a great time for Bret to be his wingman. Usually by now, Jemaine would have been talking to a girl, but he just wasn’t feeling it tonight. Maybe it was Bret’s absence, maybe it was the beer, or maybe it was Taika? No, it couldn’t be, Jemaine ignored this thought and instead ordered a pineapple martini. “Make that two.” A voice said from behind him, he turned to his right and saw a man in a jean button up shirt sit right down next to him. He couldn’t believe it, but it was him. Taika smiled and chuckled a bit, “Hope you don’t mind,” he said, “you looked lonely, I thought I’d join you.” Jemaine grinned, “I don’t mind at all. I’m Jemaine by the way, you must be Taika.” Taika smiled again, “Yup! Taika Waititi, it’s like Tiger, but without the G. People always have a rough time with that.” Jemaine nodded, “I like it, it’s very,” “Unique?” Taika asked, cutting Jemaine off before he could finish. “I guess.” Jemaine responded. “Thank you, Jemaine.” Taika once again gave a massive grin that Jemaine couldn’t help but think about over and over again.

“So, um, what brings you to New York?” Jemaine asked, Taika shrugged. “Well, I’ve never been out of Wellington, so that’s a start,” he began, “plus, there’s a lot more opportunities in the US. I mean, back in New Zealand if you wanna make a film you gotta go through the government, over here, you can just, make it.” He explained, Jemaine nodded, understanding every word that came out of Taika’s mouth. He and Bret had a similar experience, but with their music instead. “So,” he continued, “what brings you here, Jemaine. Why are you in New York? Why are you at this party?” Taika asked, gesturing with his hands and then taking a sip of the drink he was still gripping in his hand. Jemaine laughed and shrugged. “Kinda like you said, more opportunities. Bret and I are trying to do something with our music career, nothing seems to be working though…” he trailed off, Taika smirked, which made Jemaine’s heart skip a beat. “You’re in a band?” He asked, excitement bleeding through his words. “Yeah,” Jemaine responded, “we’re okay, I guess.” Taika shook his head, “Don’t sell yourself short! I’m sure you’re great, what are you guys called?” “Flight of the Conchords.” Jemaine said while Taika whipped out his phone, typing the name onto his notes. “Sweet! I’ll check you guys out. I actually used to be in a band with Bret. I’m sure you guys are way better than we were.” He chuckled at the memory, Jemaine made a mental note to ask Bret about this new known fact of his.

The bartender passed the two of them their drinks and Taika promptly paid the man. Jemaine spoke up, “oh you don’t-“ but Taika once again cut him off. “No, it’s okay, I really don’t mind.” Jemaine smiled and Taika took a sip of the drink. Jemaine watched him, hoping Taika wouldn’t look over to see and be led to believe that Jemaine was some kinda creep. All night he had been feeling different towards this man, but it was a good different. He liked the feeling of just being able to look over at Taika and have his heart skip a beat. He smiled at the way Taika would run his hand through his hair as he spoke. He would feel a slight jolt of energy through his body everytime Taika would repeat this action, or everytime he would smirk and laugh at his own jokes.

Just then, as Taika was finishing up his drink and Jemaine was finished staring at him, a familiar sound echoed through the speaker system. The beginning of Michael Jackson’s “Bad” began to play on the radio. Taika nearly choked on his martini as he hopped up from his seat, exclaiming to Jemaine, “oh my god! I love Michael Jackson! Come on, you gotta dance with me.” He held out a hand for Jemaine, who’s heart began beating so fast, he expected it to tear out of his rib cage. “Oh, I don’t know, I’m not too good at-” Taika rolled his eyes and grabbed Jemaine, pulling him up and right next to him. He was promptly pulled out into the grassy patch where people were drunkenly dancing to Michael Jackson’s iconic song. Taika clumsily danced to the beat of the tune, obviously showing that he may have had too much to drink, and Jemaine soon found himself following along, laughing all the while. There was something about watching Taika hop around, singing his lungs out, that filled Jemaine with such a sense of joy and adrenaline. 

Taika, his face plastered with a huge cheesy grin, looked over to Jemaine and grabbed his two open hands. Jemaine felt his breath get caught in his throat. His heart began to beat faster and he felt cold sweats creep over his body. He pushed all this aside though, because he didn’t want Taika to see Jemaine in a creepy way. Personally, right now, Jemaine wasn’t sure how he wanted Taika to see him. One side of him wanted to have him notice him, examine every detail of his face as if it were a mystery waiting to be solved. Yet, another side of him wanted to push away the thoughts he was having run through his mind. He wanted to repress the urges he was feeling towards this man who he had only known for a whole of one hour now. He had only had feelings like these for another man once before. It was during college when he caught his roommate who had just come out of the shower. It had only been a quick interaction, but Jemaine couldn’t deny the feelings he had that night. Similar to how he couldn’t deny his almost immediate and passionate feelings for Taika tonight.

He was soon pulled out of his thoughts as Taika twirled Jemaine back around once again. Jemaine felt himself trip clumsily over his own two feet, but Taika quickly caught him and pulled him back up to safety. “You good?” He asked, holding Jemaine a little too close for comfort. Jemaine didn’t mind though, if anything, it wasn’t close enough. “Yeah,” He stuttered, “yeah, I think I’m good.” Taika chuckled and gave his cute smirk again. This, once again, made Jemaine’s heart skip another beat. Those warm eyes and the welcoming smile to match were irresistible, and Jemaine couldn’t help but find himself staring, getting lost in them. He could feel himself losing it, until Taika abruptly flung Jemaine out of his arms just as the final chorus to “Bad” played. Jemaine decided it was best if he just watched this time, as he was no use on the dance floor. Just as the song ended, Taika struck the most accurate Michael Jackson pose Jemaine had ever witnessed. It was as if Michael Jackson himself had come back from the dead, or possessed Taika’s body in some way. It was incredible.

Taika, now out of breath, made his way back over to Jemaine. “Let’s say we have a walk so I can catch my breath?” Jemaine chuckled and nodded, “Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. You sound like you’re gonna hyperventilate.” Due to his shortness of breath, Taika was only able to nod and slowly walk off with Jemaine helping him stand. There was something about the weight of Taika pressing against him that made his thoughts run wild. The way Taika was leaning into his side, the steady beat of the other man’s heart, it could drive him mad if he let it.

Slowly, they made their way to the gate that let out of Dave’s backyard. The streets were quiet and the only thing that could be heard was the rhythmic patterns of Taika’s heavy, now softening, breaths. Jemaine spotted a bench nearby where he could sit with his new companion down. Though he liked holding up Taika, he could feel his arms ache with fatigue. He slipped him down onto the bench and plopped right down next to him. He kept a steady gaze out down the street, unsure if he could look directly into the other man’s eyes. He wanted to, but he was afraid he’d get lost in them and scare Taika away. If only he knew what he was thinking, if only he could read minds.

The street was peaceful at this time of night, everyone was either at home or out with their friends, so it left the dark winding roads vacant. There was something about the thick blanket of night that calmed Jemaine’s nerves. He was scared about the feelings he had for this man that he’d only met about an hour ago. Were the feelings real? Surely they had to be. There was no other explanation as to why Jemaine would be obsessing over someone like this if he didn’t have some sort of feelings for them. Why would he feel a surge of energy throughout his body when Taika was leaning against him? Why would he stare into Taika’s warm brown eyes and find himself getting lost in them? Why would he feel this way, if he didn’t have feelings for this man.

“I like the night,” Jemaine said, breaking the wall of silence that had built between the two of them. “Why’s that?” Taika asked, his breath still catching up to him. “Dunno, soothing I guess. Something about the calmness of it all. It’s almost like a promise that the next day will come and the sun’ll be back, but for now you can just rest and relax.” He heard a quiet scoff come from Taika, he looked over to him only a slight bit offended by the noise. “What?” He asked, defensively. Taika smiled and shrugged, “I don’t know, just a bit cheesy, that’s all. Anyways, I thought you’d say something like, ‘ah man! I love the night because of vampires and scary stuff!’ But I like what you said, I agree. I like the night too.” A small smile crept its way across his face and Jemaine looked back out into the street again, “I mean, vampires are pretty cool.”

He wanted so desperately to put an arm around Taika, maybe scoot closer to him or grab his hand, but he knew this would mess everything up. Everything was going so well, and he knew that if he did this, he would scare Taika away and never see him again. He would be known as “that perve that tried to smash Taika Waititi.” All he wanted was to be closer, even if that was only an inch more. He wanted to close the awkward gap between them and feel the warmth of Taika against his side.

Just then, as he was deciding on what he should do, he felt a heavy weight fall onto his shoulder. He looked to his left and there was Taika Waititi resting his head perfectly into Jemaine’s shoulder. His eyes were closed and his breathing had turned to a natural state, whereas Jemaine’s had sped up, quite intensely if he was being completely honest. Was Taika asleep? Or was he trying to send a message to Jemaine? He couldn’t be asleep. No one falls asleep that fast! Maybe he should poke him? No, that was a dumb idea. He didn’t know, all he knew was, he liked it. So he let it happen, and didn’t say a word.


	2. “Present”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Murray calls a band meeting to discuss some import things including the events of last night and a possible gig, Jemaine finds it hard to concentrate on the agenda.

“Jemaine”

“Present,” he said in a monotone voice, not being able to look Murray straight on. His eyes were glued to the floor, his mind left to wander through thoughts of what happened last night. It felt as if his body was in the chair he was sat down in, but his soul was still with Taika. He knew that sounded cheesy as all hell, but he couldn’t think about anyone, or anything, else. He especially couldn’t get his mind off of how Taika had rested his head gently on Jemaine’s shoulder for a good hour, since Jemaine was too afraid to move. He hadn’t wanted to lose Taika, because everything had been going so perfectly as if it was a scene ripped directly out of cheesy rom com. He just let Taika lay his head down, he didn’t move because he hadn’t wanted to risk it. 

Anyways, after a while, Jemaine had fallen asleep as well and when he woke up all that was left of Taika was an empty space next to Jemaine where he had been sat for a good couple hours. He found this to be strange, so he tried to brush it off, but he just couldn’t shake the tinge of sadness that still lurked within him. He hadn’t wanted Taika to leave, he wanted to continue to get to know him, maybe even start something more than just a friendship. If Jemaine was being honest with himself, he knew that was what he really wanted. He wanted the comforting and safe feeling of Taika’s head on his shoulder, he wanted to be able to dance with Taika everyday. He wanted all these things to become true, but the truth was, Taika had left. He left without a trace of him ever being there at all. No number, no email, just an empty bench.

A part of Jemaine believed that maybe the man he had met yesterday was just a figment of his imagination. Maybe Taika was never even real? Could it have all just been a dream? One where he had been on his way to Dave’s party, gotten tired, had a sleep on the bench, and then woken up hours later with visions of a man he hadn’t met running through his head? This all sounded crazy, but maybe it was just Jemaine’s mind trying to make excuses as to why the man he had found himself so infatuated with had left him so suddenly.

“Alright,” a sudden bubbly voice exclaimed, cutting Jemaine’s thoughts off quickly. “Band meeting. First on the agenda, parties,” Murray said, flipping to a new page of his handy notebook where he kept all the band meeting agendas. Bret perked up slightly as Murray began, but Jemaine stayed just as disinterested as before. “I heard there was a party yesterday? Is this true? Jemaine?” He looked over at Jemaine with curious eyes. 

Jemaine simply just shrugged, “Yeah, there was a party yesterday. At Dave’s. Bret and I decided to go.” Bret sighed a bit.

“Interesting,” Murray said, leaning forward in his chair. “How was it?” The two of them shrugged their shoulders. “It was okay,” Jemaine started, until briefly being cut off by Bret. “Yeah, except you left me again. I told you specifically before to not leave this time.” Jemaine groaned slightly and looked over to Bret, who looked pretty disappointed.

“Well, first of all, you left me when you went to play Clue. Second of all, I met somebody and lost track of time. I’m sorry Bret.” Bret nodded a bit more understandingly, but still looked slightly offended. 

“It’s fine,” he said quietly in return.

“Alright, now that that’s all sorted,” Murray said, checking a box off the list. “Number two, gigs.” Bret spoke up again this time, “have you got us any this time?” He asked, even though both him and Jemaine knew that the answer was probably no. Murray was arguably a good friend and had his moments in managing their band, but for the most part, he wasn’t all too good at getting them gigs or a record deal. Jemaine didn’t hold it against him though, he couldn’t really imagine anyone else managing the band, except Murray. 

“Well,” Murray began, as he skimmed the book to another page. “as it turns out, yes. Surprisingly, you do have a gig!” He looked up at them excitedly and was met by Jemaine and Bret’s unsure faces. “A real gig, or another library?” Jemaine asked. He didn’t wanna get kicked out again because they were being ‘too loud.’ Plus, he was pretty sure the library was still mad at the two of them for stealing a couch cushion the last time they performed.

“Yes,” Murray said defensively. “It is an actual gig this time! It’s at ‘The Cutting Room.’ Now, I don’t think there’s actually any cutting going on, but Bret, you could use a hair cut. If they just so happen to be cutting hair, you should let them. You need to tame that bush on you head.” Bret nodded, but Jemaine interjected. 

“I don’t think there’s actually any haircuts going on there.” Murray looked at Jemaine in confusion but nodded his head after thinking about it for a while. 

“That’s a good point. Anyways! Point is, you play there tomorrow, so I would print some flyers and post them up around town.”

“But, Murray,” Bret began to ask, Murray shifted his gaze to Bret. “You’re the manager, shouldn’t you print the flyers?” There were a good couple seconds of silence until Murray abruptly stated, “I suppose you’re right, but I’m busy.”

“Busy with what?” Cried Jemaine, slowly becoming more irritated.

“Busy with, band managing… stuff.” Murray quickly shot back, making a case for himself. All Jemaine did was give him an unsure glance and a frustrated sigh.

“But you don’t do that Murray,” Jemaine ranted. “You can’t get us a record deal, you don’t grow the fan base, you don’t get us gigs-“ Murray quickly cut Jemaine off. 

“Hey! I got you this gig. Plus the aquarium gig, the library, and, um, Central Park? Remember that? When you two got to play Central Park.” He argued, Bret nodded but Jemaine still retorted back saying, 

“Yeah, A Central Park, not THE Central Park.”

Murray nodded in defeat, but still refused to print the flyers because he was also busy with New Zealand passports and other government related things that he couldn’t speak to them about. Although, Jemaine was pretty sure Murray had just run out of excuses to say to them about how he wasn’t able to print the flyers. Anyways, point was, after the meeting was over, Jemaine and Bret found themselves walking down to the library that just so happened to be a block away. Luckily, Murray was able to put the posters he designed onto a hard drive that they could plug into the library computers enabling them to print them.

The two of them walked into the big building that was cram packed with people and books, but mostly books. Then they made their way over to the long row of computers. Bret quickly logged in as Jemaine scanned the library, making sure Mel hadn’t followed them in. He swore he’d seen her car outside, but there was no sign of her… yet. It was almost certain to them that she would make an appearance at some point like she so often did whenever they left the apartment.

Jemaine soon found himself lost in thought again, his mind lingering on the questions that still replayed over and over again in his mind. He knew it was silly, but he couldn't stop the constant Taika related thoughts that kept seeping into all the crevices of his brain.

Why had Taika left? Had Jemaine read all of the signs wrong? Maybe Taika had somewhere to go? That was kinda ridiculous because it had been pretty late at that point. Was it silly to still be thinking about this man who he had only known for one night? That last one was probably a yes.

“Hey Bret,” Jemaine began, as he broke from his trance and looked over at his best friend. Bret looked up, his curly mess of hair falling in front of his face. Jemaine felt himself flinch a bit as Bret did this, but thought nothing of it. 

“Yeah?’ Bret responded, pushing the loose curls away from his eyes.

“I need advice,” he hesitantly stated, Bret nodded along, “relationship advice.”

Bret smiled a bit and continued to nod mechanically, “Yeah?”

“Okay, so um, it sounds kinda weird,” Jemaine began, still debating if he should tell him that he had feelings for some guy that had been friends with Bret back in college. It was mostly the fact that he was scared to tell Bret that he had feelings for another man. He hadn’t come out to anyone yet, to be honest, he hadn’t really even come out to himself. Maybe he just wouldn't mention that part.

“I kinda like someone,” he began, sounding like a ten year old school girl gossiping about her crush on the playground to a fellow classmate. “But I’m pretty they don’t like me back.” He continued, watching as Bret took note of all the information at once. 

“Anyways, I'm trying to figure out a way to tell them I like them. I’m just scared that I’ll get rejected, and that they’ll think I’m silly for the feelings I’m feeling.” As he finished, he took a deep sigh and leaned back in his chair, rubbing his face in frustration. Bret gave a sympathetic look and began to speak.

“Jemaine,” he said softly, looking Jemaine dead on in the eyes. “You’re feelings aren’t silly. If you really truly like this person, it’d be better to just let them know rather than just letting it fester inside you. Chances are, the person you’re talking about feels the same way as you. Maybe he-“ Bret stopped himself, then drifted his gaze to a nearby bookshelf. “Maybe, they’re nervous too.” There was an awkward silence for a moment until a sudden and perky voice interrupted Jemaine’s confused stare that was being drilled into Bret.

“Hey guys!” Mel exclaimed, sliding a chair in between the both of them. Jemaine kept his eyes fixed on Bret, who had now returned to trying to print the posters they originally had set out to get. He was probably over thinking it, but it almost seemed like Bret was trying to tell him something. It was probably nothing.

“Hey Mel,” Bret said in a monotone voice, keeping his main focus on the screen in front of him. This meant that Jemaine was the one who had to continue the awkward conversation with Mel. “Hey Mel.” Jemaine responded. Mel grinned from ear to ear and continued.

“So, uh, Jemaine. I heard you and Bret were at a party last night? Is that true?” She interrogated, making Jemaine slightly uncomfortable. “Yeah,” he responded, pausing briefly, “um, h-how did you know were at a party Mel-”

“Common knowledge.”

Jemaine nodded hesitantly and looked over to Bret, who was being no help at all to the situation at hand.

“Anyways,” Mel continued, as Jemaine nodded along mechanically. “There weren’t any like, girls there, right?”

“I mean, yeah I guess,” Jemaine replied, even though he hadn’t really been paying any attention to the girls that were in attendance. He mostly had kept his attention on Taika, who he now began to think about again due to him recalling the events of last night to Mel.  
“Oh,” Mel said, her eyes widening. “You didn’t, like, talk to them, right? Y’know Jemaine, I would be careful around girls you don’t know, they just want your body. That’s all. Those girls are so shallow,” she continued, making Jemaine even more uncomfortable. Was Bret done with those posters yet?

“Anyways, you shouldn’t just love someone for their body. You have to love them for all they have to offer,” she reached out her hand, keeping eye contact with Jemaine, and began to slowly stroke his chest. “Body parts and all.” Her eyes dropped down to his chest, and with that, Bret popped up to grab the posters, which made Jemaine jump as well.

“It was good seeing you Mel,” Jemaine said, giving a small wave and following Bret to the wide doors of the library. He watched as Mel smiled and waved to them, wishing them goodbye. Before he coud say anything else, Bret closed the doors behind them, and she was out of sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey there! so, i know this chapter lowkey made taika look like a jerk for leaving, but i promise things will come around in the next chapter or so. also, i'm sorry for not posting much, i'll try to update more. so long! - abbey :)


End file.
